“My youngest was three months old when she went with me down to Kennedy Space Center to see the STPSat-6 launch, and that’s a program I’ve been working on for years. It means the world to me that my peanut got to see it go up. She won’t remember the launch, but she’ll remember all the ones after it.
“[As a supervisor] I’m encouraging my team to bring their kids, bring their family, and make it work because your trip is more fun and more enjoyable, and at the end of a long day of work, you can be with your family. You’re integrating both parts of your life, and I’m seeing it in my team members that they’re so excited to be able to bring their little ones and share what they do with them.
“It is very easy to get lost in your work, get burned out, and not be present when you’re home with your family or in the office. So having that opportunity to meld both worlds has really helped me, and I hope it helps the folks on my team see that when you’re in your element, whatever you’re working on, you’re present.
“And it’s a proof of concept that reinforces that we as parents and workers, can do both.
“Now my kids are so interested in STEM and science, and they see first-hand that they can do anything. I grew up in a tiny town where there wasn’t a lot of different opportunities. My little ones have a front-row seat in seeing that they could work anywhere, anything is possible and within reach, especially coming to work for NASA one day. I think it’s so cool for them to see that full circle.”
— Jena Garrahy, SCaN Network Integrity Officer, NASA Headquarters
Image Credit: NASA / Aubrey Gemignani
Interviewer: NASA / Tahira Allen